Monday, July 11, 2011

“This is not about taking a stand; it’s about standing in the right place,”

That's not what Unni said at all.

He was explaining to the congregation that religious authority of the Catholic Church has the strategy of Jesus all wrong. The Catholic Church lays heavy burdens and rules on people are the people who just don't get it. Following giving his congregation this context, what he said was the following:

"The strategy of Jesus was not about taking the right stand on issues, it is about standing in the right place."

Quite a difference between what was reported and what he actually said.

Did anybody see any reports on Unni's theology of nomatterwhatness or ridding oneself of guilt caused by sin by standing in your own strength?

I guess Chora'zin and Beth-sa'ida thought they were "standing in the right place" when all the while they were not "taking the right stand on issues," yes?

Bleh.

The statement is nothing more than bad, theological(?) nuancing,......

In other words, nothingness.

Nomatterwhatness.

Ah yes, that is the "sound doctrine" St. Paul is speaking of in 1 Tim. 1:10:

"As I urged you when I was going to Macedonia, remain at Ephesus that you may charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine, nor to occupy themselves with myths and endless genealogies which promote speculations rather than the divine training that is in faith; whereas the aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and sincere faith. Certain persons by swerving from these have wandered away into vain discussion, desiring to be teachers of the law, without understanding either what they are saying or the things about which they make assertions. Now we know that the law is good, if any one uses it lawfully, understanding this, that the law is not laid down for the just but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, immoral persons, sodomites, kidnapers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine, in accordance with the glorious gospel of the blessed God with which I have been entrusted." (1 Tim. 1:3-11)

Carol, you really were disrespectful to sit at Mass and type during the homily. You know that was wrong. Now you will give a sarcastic reply because you love sarcasm, but your behavior on Sunday was terrible.

What are you going to turn your attention now that the big bad Mass has happened and no one seems to care what you have to say, least of all, the leadership of the Archdiocese? I'm sure there are other people in Boston you can pick on.

Anonymous, At least now you're admitting that I was simply taking notes on Fr. Unni's homily and fully participated in the Mass, reverently and prayerfully.

Your assertion that taking notes in a homily is somehow something to chastise something about is noteworthy, given the number of times the audience interrupted and disturbed the prayer of the Mass wildly clapping for themselves and the sexual promiscuity, opposition to Church in the Catechism that was promoted in the homily.

I believe I saw my friend Chuck Colbert taking notes during the homily for his article which he told me would run in the rainbow times. Several gay parishioners were also taking pictures and filming at the Mass.

You will not be critical of him though, will you, because it isn't really the notetaking during the homily you object to - it's the forthright revelations of how Fr. Unni has departed from the Holy Catholic Church and is taking his parishioners with him.

It is fascinating that you could sit through a homily where you are told that that all are welcome, that prostitution, adultery and sodomy do not bring shame - but you characterize people who came to St. Cecilia's as 'people of your ilk' and use the poppycock that taking notes during a homily is some kind of error during the circus of errors going on around you.

Yes, Fr. Unni's seeds are incapable of planting themselves in my soil - and I thank Christ, the teachings of His Church and His Sacrements for it.

BTW - Cardinal O'Malley and his administration are indeed showing their stripes. But is a ginormous error to say that 'nobody cares' about Fr. Unni's de facto schism. We are nowhere near finished. In fact, the fun has just begun so stay tuned as there are some surprises in store for the Cardinal and 'the Archdiocese' up ahead.

I take issue with the comment that no one seems to care what Carol has to say. I do, and judging from the increase in blogs and orthodox commenters addressing such issues, I believe that others do as well. You may be sadly right about the Archdiocese though. I appreciate Carol's and others efforts to restore faithfulness to the Magisterium - their courage and fortitude inspires me to do more myself. I pray for all of us!

There's lots of banter going on about what Fr. Unni said or merely implied. Where is this recording of his homily that has been promised so we can all judge for ourselves? So far, there has just been a lot of hot air. We can all care more about his words if they can speak for themselves without being told how to feel about them.

Oh come on now!What difference would a recording make to you?Even when he schedule a gay pride mass, a trip to the gay men's chorus to kick off gay pride week, brought in speakers who promote gay marriage and teach parishioners to reject Church teaching, you would not admit that John Unni is a heretic slaying souls.

I wasn't recording it, I wrote down what he said word for word, as even observers here testify they saw me doing. When the recording is up, ypu will know it, but you won't judge it truthfully.

I find it interesting that supporters of Fr. Unni are focused on semantics rather than intent. For me, that in itself is a red flag. Maybe Jesus will focus on semantics too when we stand in his judgement, but somehow I don't think so. I pray that those being led astray by false shepherds will come to understand that those seeking to restore truth to pulpit are doing so out of genuine love and a desire to save souls. We are not the enemy.

Karen, that's simply not true. Believe it or not, you really are the enemy. You are the enemy of charity and are not even close to living up to the Gospel preached by Jesus. Carol is sarcastic and nasty and you all get off on it. It's a good thing that this is all ending now and you and you're readers will soon lose interest. The Church sees you all for the hypocrites that you are.

Gay people want to pray and want to add a dimension of something that is important to them during Gay Pride Week....you should be happy about that. The fact that these are gay Catholics for whom the Church is important should mean something. But you all just want to stand in judgement. Not good. A parish outing to listen to a concert put on by gay men. OHHHHH...what a scandal. Big deal. Why on earth is that such a bad thing? Listening to music sung by gay men. Get over it.

John Unni is hardly a heretic. He brings people into church. Go visit the Cathedral of the Holy some Sunday...just down the street from St. Cecilia and you'll see how empty the pews are and how bad the liturgy is. St. Cecilia works hard to have good music, good liturgy, a good bulletin, good children's faith formation, lots of outreach, and has a very strong relationship with Catholic Charities. A lot of good, Gospel-driven things go on at that parish and you all make it sound like a terrible place. Pathetic. Some of you should pay a visit there some Sunday and stop whining and imagining the horrors of the place. It's a beautiful, life-filled church with warm and friendly people who are drawn to the Church and who are committed to Catholic Social Teaching.

Well, Veronica, the Catholic Church teaches about the primacy of conscience...yes, an informed conscience. I suspect that the gay Catholics who worship at St. Cecilia have informed consciences. They are, for the most part, men in their 50's, 60's, 70's and 80's and are intelligent and have made a decision not to leave the Church. Some of them were previously married to women, many have children and grandchildren. These are people who really don't need to be attacked by people on these blogs. I think you might consider giving these men the benefit of the doubt when it comes to how informed their consciences are. Why do you enjoy attacking other members of the Body of Christ? Judge not.

Oh, anonymous, you are so clever. Just like not all Irish people get drunk and act like morons on St. Patrick's Day, not all gay people subscribe to every aspect of Gay Pride. Are you that simple that you can't understand that? Forget the parade. I know lots of gay people that don't go to the parade. Gay Pride is a lot more than what the Boston Globe puts on their front page.

I'm sorry that you equate wanting authentic Catholic Doctrine to be preached by our priests with being uncharitable. I guess that we will have to agree to disagree. As to the vibrance of your community, I often find that telling a crowd what they want to hear tends to bring a certain popularity with it. I hope that is not the case at St. Cecilia's, though it would explain why other parishes that discuss the reality of sin would be less popular. I accept that I am part of the less popular, smaller Church that adds catechesis about sin to its' social outreach programs. It is apparent that you and others are angry and hurt by all of this, and I am genuinely saddened by that fact. I sincerely look forward to the day when the truth of our actions reveals itself through Jesus. We really aren't the 'haters' and 'bigots' that we are made out to be, but we need to be concerned about protecting the Bride of Christ for the love of God and salvation of our souls as well.

The Church teaches that we are to obey our conscience. If that meant, obey the Magisterium, they would have said that. Conscience is what we are to obey. An informed conscience. You might want to start your own religion if you have so many problems with this one.

If you all don't think that you are haters and bigots, then you are also clueless. Why not let God deal with this? Why not let the Church [which is different from God] deal with this? You display incredible arrogance.

Are all of the "Anonymouses" the same? Why don't you identify yourself by some name - no one is asking for your true identity.----------------------------------Anyway, this is in response to Anonymous 3:05 who wrote:

"Well, Veronica, the Catholic Church teaches about the primacy of conscience...yes, an informed conscience. I suspect that the gay Catholics who worship at St. Cecilia have informed consciences. They are, for the most part, men in their 50's, 60's, 70's and 80's and are intelligent and have made a decision not to leave the Church. Some of them were previously married to women, many have children and grandchildren. These are people who really don't need to be attacked by people on these blogs. I think you might consider giving these men the benefit of the doubt when it comes to how informed their consciences are. Why do you enjoy attacking other members of the Body of Christ? Judge not."

How have I attacked you? I asked a question. It was sincere. You might consider checking out the beam in your own eye before you go calling everyone a hypocrite. I have news for you, Anon, we are ALL hypocrites in one way, shape, form or another. You included.

I am not a Bostonian else I would come to your parish and check you out. Perhaps you are more charitable than the wealthy liberal parish I belong to chockful of all those intellectual types who trip over themselves helping some anonymous poor person in a foreign country and won't lift a finger or part with a dime to assist the poor in their own parish.

At least be honest enough with yourself to realize that you are no better a Catholic than the rest of us. And put a lid on the labels (i.e. judgmental, hypocrite, uncharitable etc.) - I am tired of them. They have ceased to have any effect since I do not know anyone who isn't judgmental, uncharitable and hypocrite.

Do you?

Veronica

P.S. Just another remark from the Veronica Peanut Galley - I've come to the point where I think it is better to be a simpleton than one of the intelligentia.

I make no apologies for quoting three martyrs of the early Church. Their testimony deserves to be memorized.

• St. Ignatius of Antioch was devoured by wild beasts in 107 A.D. He wrote seven letters on his way to martyrdom in Rome. They are precious classics in witnessing to the Real Presence of Christ in the Holy Eucharist, and to the primacy of the Bishop of Rome. Ignatius is writing to the Romans, “fire and cross and battling with wild beasts, their clawing and tearing, the breaking of bones and mangling of members, the grinding of my whole body, the wicked torments of the devil – let them assail me, so long as I get to Jesus Christ.”

• St. Justin died a martyr’s death in 150 A. D. He is writing to a pagan who was hostile to Christianity. Says Justin, “TO ALL OUR PERSECUTORS WE SAY: ‘YOU ARE OUR BRETHREN; APPREHEND NOT US BUT RATHER THE TRUTH OF GOD.’ But when neither you nor they will listen to us, what you do only in your power will force us to deny Christ; we resist you and prefer to endure death, confident that God will give us all the blessings which He promised through Christ.” We have a record of the dialogue between Roman prefect Rusticus, and Justin whom he was persuading to sacrifice to the gods. Said Justin, “NOBODY IN HIS SENSES GIVES UP TRUTH FOR FALSEHOOD.” To which Rusticus replied, “If you don’t do as I tell you, you will be tortured without mercy.” Answered Justin, “We ask nothing better than to suffer for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ and so to be saved. If we do this we can stand confidently and quietly before the fearful judgment-seat of that same God and Savior, when as we believe the whole world will pass away.”

Justin, along with his companions, was beheaded. He was a layman who wrote the first extensive defense of the true faith in the history of Christianity.

• St. Cyprian, bishop of Carthage in Africa died in 258 A.D. Like Ignatius of Antioch, Cyprian was a staunch defender of the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist and the Roman primacy. In one of his many letters, he wrote, “THE LORD HAS WILLED THAT WE SHOULD EVEN REJOICE OVER PERSECTIONS BECAUSE, WHEN PERSECUTIONS OCCUR THEN THE FAITH IS CROWNED. God’s soldiers are put to the test and heaven is opened to martyrs. WE HAVE NOT ENLISTED IN AN ARMY MERELY TO THINK OF PEACE AND TO DECLINE BATTLE, SEEING THAT THE LORD, THE MASTER OF HUMILITY, ENDURANCE AND SUFFERING, HAS TAKEN THE FIRST PLACE IN THE CONFLICT. HE WAS THE FIRST TO DO WHAT HE TAUGHT US TO DO. HE WAS THE FIRST TO ENDURE FOR US IN ORDER TO INSPIRE US TO ENDURE FOR HIM.”

Like St. Justin, St. Cyprian was condemned to death by the sword because he refused to obey the pagan laws which demanded offering sacrifice to the gods. When the death sentence was proclaimed, Cyprian cried out, “Thanks be to God.”

So the history of Christianity has gone on over the centuries. THERE IS NOTHING, AND I MEAN NOTHING, THAT THE CHURCH NEEDS MORE THATN MEN, WOMEN, AND EVEN CHILDREN WHO ARE READY TO SUFFER AND TO DIE FOR PROCLAIMING THEIR FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST.

--John Hardon SJ Servant of God

Carol, and other here who comment, are trying to proclaim the Truth to you, and those who have been deprived of this Truth, by those whose mission is to be willing to die for the privilege of telling you the Truth. They won’t tell you the Truth. They can’t. Sadly, they no longer believe it themselves.

Someone is born homosexual. That is entirely different from your list of sins. I may be gay and may live a chaste life so don't equate me with being a liar, a thief, a rapist, etc. You are not only obnoxious, but also stupid. And, no...it is not your duty to quash priests. It is not your duty at all. You need some good spiritual direction if you think it is your duty to sit around and post on a blog as a means of correcting a priest who doesn't even read this nonsense. If you had any guts, you would call over to St. Cecilia's and make an appointment to meet with Fr. Unni. But, you would never be man or woman enough to do that. You will instead sit there and place messages on a blog that is read by like-minded people. Pathetic. Let us know when you have your meeting with Fr. Unni. If that's your duty, go for it.

Anonymous, you have been deluded. Your duty is to inform your conscience with the catechism. Once we do so, we only have one choice, we accept it and live by it.

If we reject those teachings, we are then consciously and deliberately committing mortal sin and are on the road to hell, not Christ. That is the part of Catholic teaching Fr. Unni is negligently withholding.

You are born with original sin, as a man or a woman. Homosexuality is not immutable, anymore than any other adulter is born as an adulter. We are born as sinners. We don't take pride in any sin and we certainly don't have a Mass to take pride in it. If you want to sing about your sins, knock yourself out but the fact that a Catholic priest is leading you into it, is a scandal and he needs to be called on it.

We tell the truth because we love souls and love Christ.

Fr. Unni is using you to feed his low self esteem and fundraise for the Chancery. Don't conflate what he tells you with the Catholic religion.

The Catholic Church does not teach that homosexuality is immutable. Nor does secular science. To be immutable, it has to show up in DNA. It doesn't.

Somebody like Unni may tell you it is immutable, along with the long list of other lies - but the reason why we are calling your attention to his delusions is so that you don't get sucked into his errors without being told the truth. It is your choice after that what you do with the information - whether you continue to mortally sin and take pride in them, sing about them clap about adultery - that is your business and good luck with it.

But the priest leading you to do it, that is every baptized Catholic's business.

You people who defend Corapi are insane. If he were a liberal you wouldn't be defending him now would you? Such hypocrites. Corapi is a con man and a scam artist who happened to wear a Roman collar. He preached fire and brimstone and you all bought into it, but when the cameras were turned off he was smoking crack with whores whom he would sometimes hit and slap around. Great role model. But, I suppose he isn't homosexual, so he is okay in your book. Insanity. Corapi is just a horny, violent drug abuser who found a good racket in the Church. Drink up, boys and girls!

"You are not only obnoxious, but also stupid. And, no...it is not your duty to quash priests. It is not your duty at all. You need some good spiritual direction if you think it is your duty to sit around and post on a blog as a means of correcting a priest who doesn't even read this nonsense. If you had any guts, you would call over to St. Cecilia's and make an appointment to meet with Fr. Unni. But, you would never be man or woman enough to do that."

You are discrediting Fr. Unni by showing us exactly what kind of spiritual direction he has led you to. I think we'll take a pass on that one.

BTW - I have called Fr. Unni numerous times and asked to meet with him, he doesn't have the spinal fortitude to sit with somebody who is educated in their faith and who isn't afraid to say what needs to be said.

Lastly, take heart. Heterosexual sinners and adulterers were born with original sin also. Whatever affliction and temptations beset us along the way, we have the same duty and obligation to resist sin and reform our lives as homosexuals do. There's isn't a penny's worth of difference between us.

These people are not responsible for the venom they are showing us. It is sad more than anything.

They have been seasoned and groomed by Fr. Unni to hate the teachings of the Church and those who evangelize them and they don't even know it. It's all a show run by wizards in the Chancery salivating for the Fed-Ex with 30 percent of what was collected.

Anonymous, maybe what Fr. Corapi needs is Fr. Unni's phone number. I'm sure he could come up with a sermon about Jesus not taking a stand on what he did and does and the St. Cecilia's orchestra can put it all to music and clap about it.

Carol, you don't have to publish this. For recording, I'd suggest a small digital recorder that can fit in the palm of your hand - one of those "memory stick" things. You'd want to be able to hook it to your computer with USB cables and it will come with its own software. I find that if I try to scribble notes, then I'll miss something key. Plus a recording provides much more solid proof - harder to refute.

They are victims. What else would they believe? Priests have failed to teach the Catechism. No one has told them the truth. We did not just get here in the last six weeks. To have arrived at this point, where we are now celebrating the sin of sodomy at the altar of God, no, this took forty years in a wasteland of heresy and dissent, promulgated by the "Society of Jesus", and let's face it, condoned by Rome. And, still, they drone on, at America Magazine: "homosexuality is a gift from God". What else would they believe at St. Cecelia's? This is what the Jesuits teach them. It is all they have ever been told. Remember: "If any man preach a gospel other than the one that you received, let him be anathema". Someone needs to render the "Society of Jesus" anathema for these crimes.

You keep saying stay tuned...I have to admit that I am skeptical...stay tuned for what? Are you going to be a regular visitor to St Cecilia's? The diocese doesn't care it seems...so what tricks have you got up your sleeve?

Sunday's incident is worse than murder for several reasons. First of all, it is sacrilege to raise this vice to the altar. This is effectively idolatry, a violation of the First Commandment. Second, it is blasphemy in pretending to be the teaching of God, hence taking God's name in vain (Second Commandment). Third, being idolatry instead of worship it violated the Third Commandment. Fourth, because it confirmed many in mortal sin, it begot the death of souls, a crime worse than murder. This list should be sufficient for starters.

Jerry, you really are crazy. There were over 700 people worshipping God...people praying and singing and you call it worse than murder. AND--you weren't even there. How can you say such a thing? Worse than murder...the Mass. Bread and wine were turned into the Body and Blood of Christ. I think you need to rethink what you said.

So, Fr. Unni is going to be honored by the Society of St. James in October, along with Sr. Janet Eisner, SND and William L. Burke, III. Unni is being honored for all the good work he does with the marginalized.

Jerry - what an excellent theological and spiritual assessment of what happened before our eyes -- and why this literally is what Christ was warning about when he said not to worry about those who can kill the body - but to be very afraid of those who kill souls.

Anonymous - I am very sorry that you're upset -- and we do not mean to scandalize the people being abused any more than they already are by Fr. Unni and the diocese. Just trying to explain to you where we are coming from...

"You keep saying stay tuned...I have to admit that I am skeptical...stay tuned for what? Are you going to be a regular visitor to St Cecilia's? The diocese doesn't care it seems...so what tricks have you got up your sleeve?"

In terms of the diocese 'not caring' - it is true that they do not care about the souls involved, or how many people they scandalize -- except for themselves. Cardinal Sean has a ginormous ego and he very much cares how he is perceived among high-ranking faithful prelates and among influential lay apostolates and people with money.

Apostolates that were before reluctant to paint the Cardinal as a man who misleads his sheep are no longer holding back:

Consequently, there have been significant changes that happened without you even realizing it. The Rainbow Ministry has been scrubbed clean. Fr. Unni didn't make any accusations that the people who object to his apostasy are people who hate or people who don't want gays and lesbians sitting in the pews.

Well, because "without Faith, it is impossible to please God," likewise without the worship given to the Church by God, it is impossible to properly worship Him: "Without me, you can do nothing." Hence, if a priest has an intention other than to conduct the Holy Liturgy as the Church has always conducted it, or to teach other than Holy Mother Church has always taught, then the worship is not pleasing and the graces will not be there. (BTW, this is one of the main reasons I avoid the experimental liturgy foisted on the Church after Vatican II.)

If there is someone reading this blog who is a homosexual who wants to know what it is the Catholic Church teaches with regard to homosexuality, Fr. Hardon does a great job.

Catholic Catechism on Homosexualityby Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J.

Over the centuries, the Church has often issued decrees defending Catholic morality. Among these decrees more than one has condemned the practice of homosexuality. Until recent years, however, the more common term used by the Church was “sodomy” and not homosexuality.

The reason for the shift in vocabulary has been mainly the widespread denial that sodomy is anywhere formally condemned by Sacred Scripture. Another reason is that homosexuality has become so prevalent in the modern world that one psychological science after another has developed a library of literature defending the practice of homosexuality.

This catechism is an in-depth analysis of the Catholic Church’s teaching on homosexuality as found especially in two Vatican documents on the subject. The first was issued in 1975 under the authority of Pope Paul VI; the second was published in 1986 under the authority of Pope John Paul II.

Our catechism will follow this chronological sequence of the two documents. The first document is called the “Declaration on Certain Questions Concerning Sexual Ethics”. A large part of the first section of this document does not deal directly with homosexuality. Yet it seemed proper to include this part of the document in our catechism because it lays the foundation for Catholic moral teaching on homosexuality.

It is impossible to exaggerate the importance of what the Church’s magisterium teaches on sexual morality in general and on homosexuality in particular. Clarity here is indispensable for the preservation of the true faith.

The reference sources will be identified by the letter P for the Decree authorized by Pope Paul VI, and by the letters JP for the document authorized by Pope John Paul II.

Basic Moral Principles

1. Where do human persons receive their distinctive characteristics?Human persons receive their characteristics from their sexuality. Whether a person is a man or woman largely determines the qualities of their personality. In other words, in God’s providence, the difference between men and women is not only, or mainly, biological. It is especially spiritual. (P1)

2. What is the condition of moral practice in our day?

There has been a widespread corruption of morals, and one of the most serious signs of this corruption is the unbridled exaltation of sex. Through the modern means of communication, this corruption has invaded the field of education and infected the mentality of whole nations. (P1)

3. How have some educators and moralists contributed to this corruption?

They have put forward ideas and forms of behavior that are absolutely contrary to the true morality of human persons. Some have gone so far as to promote a licentious hedonism. (P1)

4. What has been the net result of this widespread demoralization?

The net result has been confusion, even among Catholics, on what is still binding by the divine moral laws. (P1)

5. Who is principally responsible to assist the faithful in coping with this confusion?

IT IS THE BISHOPS OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH, RELYING ON THE TEACHING AND DIRECTIVES (P2)

YOUR BISHOP HAS FAILED YOU. YOU JUST MIGHT BE VERY SURPRISED TO LEARN THAT WHAT FR UNNI HAS TOLD YOU IS A LIE. TO READ THE REST SEE:

True for you, Breathnach a chara. Except that St Sissel's is a novus ordure temple so I doubt that they would have smells and bells. No Real Presence - no need for auditory or olfactory stimuli to adoration. They adore each other. They're a "community" celebrating their "diversity". In other words, their hubris and narcissism. Their self-righteous bigotry. Their self-love and their hatred of others. They are the church! They are not sheep to be instructed and protected from the wolves. They're as randy as the goats they are.

One wag (not I) somewhere called it a Unni-invertalist church. That's about it. The inversion of the Gospel by Unni.

I'm not sure whether the Piskies are totally without fleeced sheep. Doesn't Muffy still "worship" there?

You know, there is an ironic justice in the fact that the Piskies got Fr Al Cutie and his wife and child to counterbalance Bishop Gene Ugly and his catamite and abandoned wife and daughters. Even the heretics are not wholly forsaken by the Lord.

Meanwhile the hooligans are still fighting the Battle of the Boyne. God save Ireland.

It's fascinating to observe the Episcopal Church. As it descends deeper and deeper into it's affirmation of the world, it becomes more obsessed with empty ritualism.

I ran across an Episcopal Church in Michigan that proclaimed on it's website: ""Smells and bells enhance worship". Hmm, I thought maybe this is an Episcopal Church ready to come over to Rome? Not a chance. I read a little further and: "St. Barnabas Episcopal Church, Ancient rites. Progressive minds. Affirming hearts". One of their main "ministries" is: "reaching out to all people in the community around us is absolutely vital to the life of our parish. One way we are reaching out to the marginalized is by welcoming the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) community."

Sadly, they could proclaim on their website : "Coming soon to a Roman Catholic parish near you."

Jack--It is uncanny that you posted this. I was going to ask you for the link. Her Ave Verum Corpus is a beaut. Thank you! Soon we will have to listen to this, and all other holy music, underground, the only place where faithful Catholics will be granted freedom to worship and proclaim the gospel. Krie eleison.

The papal decree—which authorizes priests to administer the sacrament of holy matrimony to same-sex partners and explicitly states that "homosexual relations between two consenting adults is not, and never has been, a sin"—was reportedly a direct result of the pope sharing an afternoon of engaging conversation and hearty laughter with the gay couple.

"Not only are Tony and Craig complete sweethearts, but anyone who spends more than two minutes with them can see they're clearly perfect for each other," said Benedict, who in the past has described homosexual behavior as a grave disease that threatens all of humanity. "They're fun, gracious, and simply wonderful company. And you can tell they have something special just by the way they look at each other."

"They're soulmates, really," added the pope, smiling. "Allowing them to formalize their union in the Church is the least we could do for them."

Vatican officials said the vacationing couple and the Supreme Pontiff met during a routine papal audience at St. Peter's Basilica, and "really hit it off" after discovering shared interests in photography, the piano, and Spanish cuisine.

Pope Benedict XVI claims that any law respecting the wishes of Tony and Craig is "a law I support wholeheartedly."

Though sources said the 84-year-old Benedict, a lifelong scholar of antigay ecclesiastical law, initially appeared skeptical upon meeting the pair, he was reportedly put at ease after Housinger spoke a few humorous lines to the pope in his native German and Ruggiero effusively complimented his gold cuff links, touching off a friendly conversation that effectively upended 2,000 years of Roman Catholic teachings.

"They were witty and cultured, but also very friendly—I really don't meet too many people like that," the pope said of the couple, who excitedly suggested to him several off-the-beaten-path sights and "to die for" restaurants after he mentioned an upcoming trip to Buenos Aires. "Craig has a great passion for Italian painting, and I learned a lot from him about the Church's collection of Caravaggios. He's a real Renaissance man."

"I know what scripture says about homosexuals, but when I stop to think about it, I can't get past the fact that the Bible is just a book, and Tony and Craig are real people," Benedict added. "Love is love. Man-woman, man-man, woman-woman—who cares? The Catholic Church recognizes it's not the Stone Age anymore."

Invited on a personal tour of the Vatican, Housinger and Ruggiero were said to have charmed the College of Cardinals with amusing anecdotes from their seven-year relationship, displaying a playful yet tender affection for each other that deeply moved the clergy.

High-ranking officials within the Holy See said they were pleased to learn both partners were practicing Catholics who attend mass regularly, and were surprised to discover Housinger was employed as a general contractor, a profession none of them considered gay at all.

According to reports, the highlight of the afternoon came when the couple shared photographs of their adopted 14-month-old Cambodian daughter, Lorraine, whom the swooning clergy universally described as "angelic."

"Even if you just meet Tony and Craig for a few minutes, it's easy to see how supportive and patient they are," said the Most Rev. Francesco Coccopalmerio, the Vatican's top expert on canon law, who noted the two partners have a stronger bond than some of the married couples he knows. "You can tell they've created a perfect household for a child to grow up in. I just wish everybody could be raised by parents as devoted and caring as them."

Following a warm farewell in which Ruggiero hugged Benedict—an incident the Holy Father described as "not even weird or anything"—Vatican leaders are said to have unanimously agreed that it was "completely hypocritical" for anyone, especially those who have taken a vow of celibacy, to tell people whom they can or cannot share their lives with.

"If Tony and Craig want to exchange vows before God and their friends and family, where's the harm in that?" Benedict said. "It's not as if they're offending the sanctity of life, like those wicked birth control users who will toil for all eternity in hellfire. Or the bloggers who lay heavy burdens on people of good will."

A not so funny article on how we got to where we are at St. Cecilia's:

April 1, 2011

New lies for old -- The USCCB and New Ways Ministry

By Randy Engel

Excerpt:

In his classic work New Lies For Old — The Communist Strategy of Deception and Disinformation, ex-KGB Soviet defector Anatoliy Golitsyn defines "strategic disinformation" as "a systematic effort to disseminate false information and to distort or withhold information so as to misrepresent the real situation, in, and policies of, the communist world and thereby to confuse, deceive, and influence the noncommunist world, to jeopardize its policies, and to induce Western adversaries to contribute unwittingly to the achievement of communist objectives." [1]

Over the last 40 years, a similar program of strategic disinformation and deception has been waged against faithful Catholics in America by the National Conference of Catholic Bishops/U.S. Catholic Conference (NCCB/USCC), known today as the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).

From day one, with malice and forethought, the NCCB/USCC, a creature of the Second Vatican Council (although its roots go back to the pre-Conciliar era), has been systematically attacking and undermining Catholic dogma, faith, and morals, thereby creating a climate of confusion, deception, and apostasy among rank and file Catholics.

And there is no area in which the USCCB's disinformation program has been more successful than in the realm of Catholic sexual morality as it applies to homosexuality and pederasty — the main driving forces behind the clerical sex abuse scandal in AmChurch today.

I am sorry to have minced my words. I am trying to be a good Cardinal O'Malley sheep. :-)

Breathnach,

They are about a month or two from "reaching out" to the necrophiliac "community" or the bestiality "community". It's sad because there once was an element of Catholicism in that sect. But the Ordinariates will absorb those of true faith; the poseurs will await their reward. St. Thomas More, pray for us.

Maria,

Sissel is sublime. She sings in a dozen languages. She is a Catholic in spite of herself. A woman so beautiful and so talented is a gift of God. Fulton Sheen would have her in front of the High Altar in a heartbeat. I love her singing. You can see from her demeanor in concert that she is humble despite her prodigious talent. I have learned to read Norwegian to be able to understand the folk songs in her native language. She is good people. God will call her to Himself.

Anonymous,

What? Tony and Craig? Well thank the Good Lord. So me and Moose, the guy next door, can do the down low after a couple of beers and have nothing to confess. God bless you Father Unni, you are a closet queer's salvation.

Except I'd rather get Moose shite-face and get it on with his nympho wife. Good Lord, deliver me from the chains of concupiscence. But just not yet. Moose is passed out. Nan the nympho is pouring herself another gin. See how it starts? I will go to confession on Saturday. I hope the padre is hetero.

God are you people ignorant. An alb is not a garment for the ordained, it is the garment of the baptized. So, a female altar server is wearing an alb is entirely appropriate. Unbelievable. A woman is serving at Mass and is distributing the Eucharist and you call her a sea hag. I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Carol, you must be so proud of your fans.

Jack, you're an ass. On a percentage basis, heterosexual men are more likely to molest a child than homosexual men are. You love offending people. Gay men in St Cecilia are not looking to molest any children. How can you call yourself a Christian? Honestly.

My French is rusty but I want to say that pedophilia is a sexual crime against children. Homosexuality is a sexual attraction between two people above the age of consent.

I absolutely believe that Unni's message of giddy nomatterness, instead of judging our actions based upon right and wrong, sin and virtue, applies to and therefore would appeal to pedophiles that may be lurking in the community. In fact, it would be conducive for pedophiles to attend with their victims so that the victim would cease resisting. This is the danger in the situation and I would caution any parent of a child to be vigilant.

As far as the woman wearing the alb, let us face it. She was over 70. She is a little long in the tooth to be a 'altar girl'. Her use of an album to give out Communion was scandalous. Furthermore, this is a parish that hosts women who trick naive people into believing they have been 'ordained'. Have the decency to call a spade a spade.

THE USCCB'S 'MINISTRY TO PERSONS WITH HOMOSEXUAL INCLINATION' More Magical Moments With Our Bishops

March 2007By Randy Engel

The final vote on the Guidelines was 194 in favor, 37 against, with one abstention.

To be fair, chances were slim to none that a document from the powerful USCCB Committee on Doctrine, crafted in large part by Archbishop (now Cardinal) Levada, the current Prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the second most powerful office at the Vatican, was going to get sent back to committee, much less voted down by the American bishops. After all, "gay" ministries (Courage and Encourage are not included in the definition of "gay" ministries) have been around for more than 30 years -- 37 years if we include the notorious Dignity, the model for all future "gay" ministries.

Yet the Guidelines provide no background or objective analysis of the impact "gay" ministries have had on the life of the Church. Still more remarkable, not a single bishop asked the Chairman of the Committee on Doctrine to produce this critical information as part of the discussion on the document. The assumption that "gay" ministries, in principle, are good and should continue to be supported by the American bishops was never challenged. The document's proponents were happy to quibble with the scant opposition over text rather than focus on the moral destruction these "ministries" have wrought on Catholic parishes, the diocesan priesthood, and religious life. Most "gay" ministries are about this:

- "Gay" ministries are "inclusive" -- that is, they cater to a wide range of sexual perverts in addition to sodomites and lesbians. These include bisexuals, transsexuals, transgendered persons, transvestites, sadomasochists, and others.

- "Gay" ministries recruit -- like the Army -- especially among vulnerable teens. They give a new meaning to "youth outreach."

- "Gay" ministries exploit parish resources, financial and otherwise.

- "Gay" ministries have access to corridors of power in the U.S. Church, including the USCCB -- access that is routinely denied to opponents of the Homosexual Collective, such as Roman Catholic Faithful.

- "Gay" ministries, especially at the leadership level, do not provide programs for chaste living.

- "Gay" ministries systematically strip parishioners of every vestige of natural revulsion the normal person experiences when initially confronted by sexual perversion. Alexander Pope captured the dangers of "gay" ministries when he wrote:

Vice is a monster of so frightful mien, As to be hated needs but to be seen;Yet seen too oft, familiar with her face,We first endure, then pity, then embrace.

The U.S. bishops do not need these Guidelines. They need a step-by-step manual on how to defund and dismantle "gay" ministries. And this, dear reader, is something the USCCB will never provide.***********************************

I suspect that faxes to the hierarchy will have little to impact. They have been at this for forty years and it is now institutioalized. Remember when New Ways Ministry was ordered to cease and desist by George? Well, the website is up and running and James Martin SJ is a frequent contributor. Good to know, huh?

"As far as the woman wearing the alb, let us face it. She was over 70. She is a little long in the tooth to be a 'altar girl'. Her use of an alb to give out Communion was scandalous. Furthermore, this is a parish that hosts women who trick naive people into believing they have been 'ordained'. Have the decency to call a spade a spade."

First of all, she isn't an "altar girl" she was an altar server. Would you call a 70 year old man serving Mass an "altar boy?" It's just disrespectful of you. And, serving Mass has nothing to do with age. Have you never gone to daily Mass where there are usually senior citizens serving? Or to a religious house, where an older religious is serving? The role of altar server is not confined to children. So, she may be "long in the tooth" to use your uncharitable language, but that does not exclude her from assisting at Mass. The ordinary garb of an altar server is an alb. Why on earth do you consider that scandalous? Are you really scandalized by an older retired woman serving Mass? If so, you have bigger issues than I thought. I would much rather see adult servers in albs than walking around the sanctuary in all styles of dress. Again, the alb is the garment of the baptized. There is nothing scandalous about someone wearing an alb. There is nothing clerical about it.

"Furthermore, this is a parish that hosts women who trick naive people into believing they have been 'ordained.'"

Oh yeah, I'm sure that the people at St Cecilia are out to trick dumb Catholics into believing that women are ordained. How do you come up with this stuff. You take the simplest things and twist them all around to support your crazy ideas.

This is a lovely woman who is very much involved in the life of that parish. She's married with children, and she serves at Mass. Perhaps she should apologize for being old and scandalizing you, but I don't think she will.

If you are at all reasonable, you will rethink your position on this particular point.

anonymous: First of all, she isn't an "altar girl" she was an altar server.

Hi, I'm Maryanne and I'll be your altar server this evening.

The ordinary garb of an altar server is an alb.

Wrong. The "garb" of an altar boy is cassock and surplice. Oh wait ... this is the novus ordure.

But the alb is the vestment (not "garment" or "garb") of the priest (not "presbyter" or the "presider" over the "com-Unni-ty"). It is tied with a cincture. And on the left sleeve is pinned the maniple.

It is indeed scandalous for the laity to wear the alb; it is indeed clerical. But in the novus ordure, everyone is a "minister" of some nonsense or other.

The solution to all of this scandal is to abolish the often heretical novus ordure and restore the true Mass. Then there will be altar boys and vocations and priests.

Then Maryanne can rest her weary bones in the pew where she belongs, not playing "altar server" or "extraordinary minister" or "quasi-priestess".

Perhaps you are unaware, but your post passive/aggressively attempts to characterize a legitimate complaint that the priests all sat down to let an elderly woman in an alb give out Communion as a sign of stupidity, rather than admit that this could indeed scandalize a faithful Catholic.

She is not in a convent. There were plenty of priests present.

In all my 50 plus years as a Catholic I have never seen anyone Altar serving but little children. She looked very strange. Given,Fr Unni enables women tricking people into believing they are priests, charity on your part would call for latitude.

Altar servers do not serve Communion, so something is wrong with your assertion. I won't stoop to your level to question your IQ though.

We are finished wasting time explaining why an old lady wearing an alb to pass out Communion at a Mass devoted to sin, while six or seven priests sit down ten feet from her is scandalous and against the guidance of the GIRM and the Catholic religion.

Taking things out of context and straight-faced lying should only tie us up for so long. Then, the waste of time begins to get sinful.

Is anyone else scandalized that Carol refers to an older woman as an old lady and just can't stand that she is in an alb (the appropriate attire for her) distributing communion? For your information, we had a confirmation with a number of priest concelebrants and the bishop told us that we should use Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion (including women!) since they were already planning on it. It's called a "pastoral decision" an bishops and priests have the right to make pastoral decisions.

[157.] If there is usually present a sufficient number of sacred ministers for the distribution of Holy Communion, *extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion may not be appointed*. Indeed, in such circumstances, those who may have already been appointed to this ministry should not exercise it. The practice of those Priests is reprobated who, even though present at the celebration, abstain from distributing Communion and hand this function over to laypersons.[258]

Tell that to the bishop. Now show us the quote that says that the alb is a clerical vestment rather than being the appropriate garb for all the baptized. And show us the quote that says that altar servers should be children.

I was addressing the use of emoHC while ordained ministers are present.

You say, "Tell that to the bishop."

Please keep in mind according to Vatican II's document on the Sacred Liturgy (Sacrosanctum Concilium):

22. 1. Regulation of the sacred liturgy *depends solely on the authority of the Church*, that is, on *the Apostolic See* and, as laws may determine, on the bishop.

2. In virtue of power conceded by the law, the regulation of the liturgy within certain defined limits belongs also to various kinds of competent territorial bodies of bishops legitimately established.

3. Therefore *no other person*, even if he be *a priest*, may add, remove, or change anything in the liturgy on his own authority.

There is no particular liturgical norm via the USCCB - and approved by Rome - that allows emoHC to distribute Our Lord's Body and Blood while ordained ministers are present (see 22.2 above).

I totally agree that altar servers do not distribute communion and I also agree that if there are priests present, they, as the ordinary ministers of the Eucharist, should distribute Holy Communion. However, I just can't stand that so many of you "holy people" are quick to label an older woman who is a great person, as a "long in the tooth" or "an old lady" or "a fish hag" - it's just not keeping with charity and it discredits you in a big way. For your information, she was in an alb because her role was that of an altar server. The other altar server was also in an alb (an older, retired gentleman). She happens to be an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion and a priest told her to help with communion. So she did. It's a simple story. Yes, I know....that priest shouldn't have asked her to do that, but he did. Was she pretending to be ordained? Absolutely not. She has no desire to be ordained and certainly isn't trying to "play priest." As I understand it, she didn't even want to wear an alb because of the heat that day, but was told that it really was the right and appropriate thing to do (and I agree with that...altar servers, adults or children...belong dressed in albs. They draw less attention to themselves when dressed in albs than they do walking around the sanctuary in a manner of dress).

I'm not sure why so many of you chose to make such a big deal out of this and I have no idea who this Jack O'Malley is who says it's scandalous for a lay person to wear an alb. I guess he's never been to a baptism ("see in this white garment...") or the Easter Vigil when the newly baptized put on albs as a symbol of their new birth in the waters of baptism. What lay people should NOT wear, according to liturgical norms, is the cassock. The cassock, despite so many years of altar boys wearing cassock and surplice, is a garment (not a vestment) particular to the ordained or to those preparing for ordination. Altar servers should be in albs. And, according to the instructions, albs may be worn by all ministers of the liturgy...i.e., choir members and extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion.

Father Leonard Feeney was an inspiring speaker and a very learned man of very deep Catholic Faith.

Unfortunately he insisted on proselytizing (as well as organizing a community) based on a teaching that was opposed to the Magisterium. It took several years but Father Feeney was disciplined by the Church. His followers chose to found a community outside the Church.

Father Unni and his Unni-ites, are on the opposite extreme from the Feenyites. Unlike the learned Feeney, Unni is a pop preacher. He seeks the acclaim of the world. He is loved by the elites. His preaching of surrender to the world and accommodation of sin seeks the "cheap grace"** that the Lutheran, Dietrich Bonhoeffer warned about.

Happily, Father Feeney found his way back to the Church as his death neared. The elites despised Feeney, the Kennedys were instrumental in motivating Cardinal Cushing to proceed canonically against Feeney.

Father Unni has the protection of the elites. He also has the benefit of a corrupted culture and 40 plus years of watered down Roman Catholicism.

Still, I believe-- the gates of Unni will not prevail against it.

**** "cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline. Communion without confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ."

The sound was terrible on all the recordings and so the tecchies had to work the sound. It's as good as it's going to get now so it will be coming.

I'm waiting for Chuck Colbert's piece in the Rainbow Times. When his piece goes up, I'll link the homily with some commentary.

The reason being, I've been acquainted with Chuck for many years. Off and on through those years, we've talked about the teachings of the Catholic Church.

For those of you who are questioning the accuracy of my report on what Fr. Unni said - here's what Chuck Colbert had to say:

"By the way, I read your blog. I don't think it is accurate to say that he appeared to be getting ready to fly."

(He was most definitely overly dramatic and he moved his body around so his vestments would look look more like a caped superhero - but I plead guilty to hyberbole on my description of his silly antics)

"And as the recording bears witness, the homily was not interrupted with applause - only at the end."

(I thought I said the Liturgy was interrupted numerous times with applause which is very accurate - but if I said his homily was interrupted several times with applause, Chuck's criticism is valid)

"Otherwise, Id' say what you heard, I heard, too, but with a very different understanding."

Thus, what I reported Fr. Unni saying was heard by Chuck as well.

Chuck Colbert said the message he took home from Fr. Unni's words is different.

Another poster in the comments section said something like Fr. Unni's messages 'inspire'.

What exactly is it Fr. Unni inspires people to do is exactly the substance we need to get to.

Let's see what Chuck understood Fr. Unni's message to be and we can chat about it with a copy of the homily up at the same time.

Here was my response to Chuck - which can be food for thought for the future discussion...

Fr. Unni says things in such a way that it is impossible to draw the conclusion that gays must comply with moral teaching about chastity and celibacy or else they are offending God. I will be interested in your interpretation of Fr. Unni's message to all sitting there active in a relationship that imperils ones salvation.

I'm also interested in how Chuck feels about the ignorance of this important interpretation to the people coming and gong for years, some dying with this ignorance.

Because I am furious at what he has done and continues to do to souls.

They were short on people to give out Communion, so Fr. Unni walked by all the priests in the Sanctuary (6 or 7?) and asked her?

Come on!

I'm not buying she was an altar server - frankly. There were several children who were altar servers whom I believe came down the aisle with the procession. I did not see her, nor did I see her processing out. To the best of my knowledge, she just showed up with all the other lay people who gave out Communion, none of whom were wearing an alb.

Let me tell you something - I think I'm a nice woman too - and a woman who wants to please God. I also believe it's 'nice' to be conscious of not offending my fellow Catholics worshiping with me. We don't call attention to ourselves in ways that direct people's attention away from Christ and onto us.

Even though I think I'm nice, way back when, I was involved in 'life teen' Mass. It was back in a time when I was ignorant of Liturgical rubrics. I had just made my way back to Church with my children in tow and I wanted to do something family-oriented and inspiring them and others in my few found enthusiasm for my religion. I worked in youth ministry and helped bring LifeTeen to a parish.

I will tell you what I know now that I didn't know then: LifeTeen Liturgy does some things like calling teenagers up around the Altar during consecration and some of the music is not exactly theologically correct -- further, the instruments are distracting to the Sacredness of the Liturgy.

Souls scandalized by these things had the courage to tell me where the Liturgy was a disobedient witness - and hurting parishioners who were more educated in the faith than I.

I was appalled. When I went to the priest, he characterized these people as the parish cranks and dismissed the concerns. But I wanted to know whether what I was doing was disobedient to Christ's Church -- and scandalizing fellow Catholics.

So, I pursued the truth and I found it, I stopped doing what I was doing.

This has nothing to do with whether I am a good person and I want to do good. The fact is, I was told that it wasn't good and it is charity and servitude and humility to care about it and correct our errors.

Again, the most important thing to me is pleasing God, followed by being a witness to my children and those in a Catholic community that I want to be faithful - and not distract or scandalize people who sit in the pews beside us.

This is a different agenda that circling the wagons of people speaking the truth.

Those observing the woman in the alb - and I don't really care the reasons why - saw an offensive and scandalous sight - a woman dressed up in an alb giving out communion while all the priests sat by and at a Mass that was confirming who people sleep with.

Why don't you have the decency to see how this would scandalize people educated in their faith?

And, I'm sorry to say it, but dressing up in an alb to serve in a ministry that is exclusively for children, is at best, weird.